Apple's iTunes Radio attracts ads from major brands like McDonald's, Nissan & Pepsi

Apple's forthcoming iTunes Radio service, set to debut with the launch of iOS 7, has already attracted some premium brands for advertisers, including Proctor & Gamble, Pepsi, Nissan and McDonald's, according to a new report.

Details on the launch advertising lineup for iTunes Radio were revealed on Tuesday by AdAge, which named four of the "high-profile brand partners" Apple has ready to go. The report also indicated that "possibly one or two more brands" will be on board before the service is rolled out to the general public.

Some of the advertising deals are said to reach as high as tens of millions of dollars, with a minimum buy-in of $1 million. And Apple has been securing long-term contracts, extending up to 12 months, reporter John McDermott said.

Apple has incentivized partners to get in at launch by giving them exclusivity within their respective industries through the end of 2013. iTunes Radio ads will open up to the likes of Coca-Cola, a Pepsi competitor, or Toyota, a rival of Nissan, come January 2014.

iTunes Radio was announced by Apple in June at the company's annual Worldwide Developers Conference. A direct competitor to the current streaming Internet radio leader Pandora, the service offers users the ability to listen to customized stations for free with the occasional advertisement.

In addition to being built into the Music app in iOS 7, iTunes Radio will also be a part of iTunes for both Mac and PC, as well as the Apple TV set-top box.

Customers who subscribe to Apple's $24.99-per-year iTunes Match service can listen to content on iTunes Radio without an advertising interruptions. And if a user hears a streaming song that they like, Apple offers quick access to purchase that track on iTunes  even on the iOS lock screen.

Currently available as part of the iOS 7 beta for developers to test, iTunes Radio has featured placeholder advertisements. Those ads are delivered through Apple's iAd service, and some of them are even presented in video form.

Users will be presented with an audio ad every 15 minutes, and a video ad once per hour. Skipping six songs also automatically triggers an ad, in the current iOS 7 beta.

As each day passes and more companies announce something new for Apple's iDevices, it appears Apple will be announcing a lot of mass behind iOS7 which should build to a high momentum quickly for iOS7 adoption and sales of existing and newly announced Apple products.

By kicking this off in early September, can you even imagine the force it will have as it builds through to the end of December??!! This week we have only heard the faint rumblings of the Apple run-away fully loaded freight train!!!

I'm not interested in this streaming service, only with true "Internet radio," which I listen to a lot.

There is some evidence it will be both in that Apple has reportedly asked some Internet Radio stations to provide cover art for the new service, but it isn't yet clear whether they will allow these stations equal footing with their own streaming service described above.

Then there is the question of even if it allows other stations, will it allow commercial free ones? As an avid listener of commercial free Internet radio I am very skeptical that this service will be anything much more than "iTunes streaming with ads." Almost none of the good internet radio stations have commercials at the moment and are instead listener supported.

Then there is the question of even if it allows other stations, will it allow commercial free ones? As an avid listener of commercial free Internet radio I am very skeptical that this service will be anything much more than "iTunes streaming with ads." Almost none of the good internet radio stations have commercials at the moment and are instead listener supported.

I'm not interested in this streaming service, only with true "Internet radio," which I listen to a lot.

There is some evidence it will be both in that Apple has reportedly asked some Internet Radio stations to provide cover art for the new service, but it isn't yet clear whether they will allow these stations equal footing with their own streaming service described above.

Then there is the question of even if it allows other stations, will it allow commercial free ones? As an avid listener of commercial free Internet radio I am very skeptical that this service will be anything much more than "iTunes streaming with ads." Almost none of the good internet radio stations have commercials at the moment and are instead listener supported.

Naaa it's pretty good. I been listening to iTunes Radio for few months. The ads are pretty so far. It's not too often. I think the ads bring a well invited break in between songs.

Are you suggesting that, in allowing ads, Apple is 'borrowing' a revenue idea from Google? Seriously?

Nope, that Apple sees merit now in using ad revenue and user tracking to deliver a "free" feature. I don't think you'd ever claim you saw the day coming when Google's feature would be a paid subscription but Apple's competing one would be "free" and ad-supported.